Obama's Katrina? Not So Much, Says America

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Thursday May 06, 2010 · 10:39 AM PDT

2010/05/06 · 10:39

This looks like yet another rightwing meme fail. A new poll is out about American's perceptions of the oil spill, and there are some encouraging numbers. We'll look at opinions on offshore drilling first.

Okay, this poll is from Rasmussen, which is widely believed to have a strong "house effect" that favors Republicans and conservative viewpoints. But that just makes the results even more dramatic:

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 58% of voters believe offshore oil drilling should be allowed. But that’s down 14 points from 72% just after President Obama’s announcement at the end of March that he was lifting the ban on offshore drilling for the first time in years.

A 14-point drop in a single month. I wonder what could have caused that?

Oh, but the best part is under the fold...

But first, a bit more on the offshore drilling question:

Twenty-three percent (23%) now oppose offshore drilling. Nineteen percent (19%) remain unsure whether it’s a good idea or not.

However, while most support drilling, 69% are at least somewhat concerned that offshore drilling may cause environmental problems. That’s up from 49% in March.

And a 20% rise in environmental concern.

Amazing what a little real-world experience will do to people's outlook. As a recent excellent diary about the 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill pointed out, even the most catastrophic events tend to fade from memory after awhile. This latest disaster seems to have refreshed that collective memory.

Oh, but I mentioned above that the best part of the poll was yet to come. You know that "Obama's Katrina" meme that the rightwing media (actually, all media) has been desperately pushing? The false equivelancy that tries to equate a manmade disaster with a hurricane that everybody saw coming for several days ahead of time? Yeah, that one.

Well, the public ain't buying it:

How do you rate President Obama's response to the major oil leak off Lousiana's coast -- excellent, good, fair or poor?

20% Excellent

23% Good

28% Fair

26% Poor

Rightwing meme FAIL. 71% think his response was excellent/good/fair. And note the percentage that seems to keep cropping up every single time, in every single poll related to President Obama: 26%. That's who blames him. The consistency of that number is really something.

So support for offshore drilling is there, but has fallen dramatically in just a single month. Concern for the environmental consequences of drilling has risen in equally dramatic fashion. And that's only in a few weeks. If the effects of this catastrophe continue to get worse, and the environmental and economic results continue to be shown to people, expect support to fall even further.

All of this points to the perfect time to ban offshore drilling permanently.

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